Klay Thompson Reacts to Being Snubbed on NBA's 75th Anniversary Team
As the NBA celebrates the tip-off of its landmark season, the league commemorated the event with the announcement of its 75th Anniversary Team. The team announcement was meant to celebrate the collective accomplishments of some of the greatest players to have stepped foot on the NBA court, with the official selection process being described as follows:
“The NBA 75th Anniversary Team was selected by a blue-ribbon panel of current and former NBA players, coaches, general managers and team and league executives, WNBA legends and sportswriters and broadcasters. Voters were asked to select the 75 Greatest Players in NBA History without regard to position. Panelists did not rank their selections. Current and former players were not allowed to vote for themselves.”
Through 75 years of existence, the league has seen some of the greatest players take the court, with a few still active in today’s game. 11 active players were selected to the 75th Anniversary Team, including Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors. His inclusion is a no-brainer: Curry is the greatest shooter of all time, future hall of famer, and an architect of the Warriors dynasty.
What didn’t make sense was a notable missing name on the 75th Anniversary Team: Curry’s fellow splash brother and equally important architect of Golden State’s dynasty: Klay Thompson.
Upon hearing that his name did not make the 75th Anniversary Team, Thompson took to social media to express his thoughts on being snubbed:
Following Golden State’s home opener at Chase Center Thursday night, Thompson took to social media again Friday morning, elaborating more on his disappointment to being snubbed on the list, while noting that this only adds more fuel to his comeback to the court this season:
It’s safe to say that Klay is not alone in his thinking. Fellow teammate and architect of the Warriors’ dynasty Draymond Green reiterated that not only does Thompson belong on the list, but that in his mind Klay is a top 50 player of all time:
With over seven decades of NBA basketball having been played, it’s a tall order to honor just 75 players with this list. At the end of the day, a player equally deserving (at the least) will be snubbed and miss out. When comparing individual accolades, it can be a toss-up between one player over the other based on point of view.
But Klay’s second social media post hit the nail on the head: “Winning isn’t everything to some people like it is to me I guess.”
As defined by the NBA, this 75th Anniversary Team is meant to celebrate the accomplishments of these individual players. Klay by all means has the individual accolades on his resume:
- 5x All-Star
- 2x All-NBA Third Team
- 2011-2012 All-Rookie First Team
- 2018-2019 All-Defensive Second Team
- 2016 NBA Three-Point Contest Champion
That resume alone puts him in the conversation, but what should undoubtedly place him on the 75th Anniversary team is the following accomplishment: 3x NBA Champion.
Very few players are lucky to be an NBA champion, even fewer are able to claim two championships to their name, and there are a select group of players who are part of an NBA dynasty. Klay Thompson has been instrumental in the Warriors’ three championships in 2015, 2017, and 2018. Golden State would not have gone to five straight NBA Finals from 2015 to 2019 if Klay Thompson was not on the court.
The essence of the game of basketball, and really all sports, is competition. You crave to beat your opponent and to do so at the highest level. With three rings to his name, Klay has done just that not once, not twice, but three times. Few players are lucky to get just one chance at the NBA Finals.
Klay is one of the greatest shooters this league has ever seen, one of the greatest two-way players to step on the court (consistently defending the opposing team’s best player), and one of the rare players who can stake their claim to an NBA dynasty.
To have him absent on the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team is a clear blunder by the panel that finalized the list.
One thing is for certain: you could see Klay’s hunger and determination to get back on the floor as he sat courtside for the Warriors’ win Thursday night over the Clippers. It’s not far-fetched to assume his snub added more fuel for him to return and remind the league what they’ve been missing the past two seasons.
After missing out on the 75th Anniversary Team, it looks like Klay will be reminding the panel how they gaffed on his snub as well.